There’s a saying: “You can’t understand another person’s experience until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes.” Today, there are 2,900 active and aspiring ministry personnel in The United Church of Canada, and you have travelled alongside them in their journey. Your gifts through Mission & Service support ministry students every step of the way by helping with education costs and providing financial support.
The Rev. Jason Meyers, a new ordinand, didn’t grow up in the church. “It was through a series of events that happened in my life, through brokenness and suffering and having the person of Jesus influence how my life was unfolding, that ministry became an option,” he explains.
After his son was born, Jason couldn’t ignore the call to ministry he had felt for some time. “After Isaiah was baptized, our minister asked me to write Isaiah a letter that he would read when Isaiah is confirmed as a teenager. I started to write things like ‘Isaiah, I want you to follow your dreams and follow what God is calling you to do in your life.’ I realized that I wasn’t doing that in my own life.”
The day after writing the letter to his son, Jason walked to a theological college to learn more about ministry education.
A few years later, Jason was heading off on another walk, this time to his ordination ceremony. The journey started at Emmanuel College in Toronto and ended in Barrie, Ontario, a two-week, 225-kilometre-long spiritual pilgrimage. As he walked, Jason reflected on his journey with God and prepared himself spiritually for ordination and ministry.
That was in 2019. Since then, what has surprised Jason most about ministry is his expanding capacity to love. “I thought that when my kids were born, that was kind of the size my heart would be, but I’ve come to love the church, the people, and the vocation of ministry more deeply than I ever imagined. I’m so thankful that Jesus reached into my life and invited me on this journey with him,” he says.
And what would Jason say to those whose generosity has supported his journey to ordination through Mission & Service?
“I’d say it’s worth it. The church is alive and vibrant, and it’s worth investing in. The leaders are working hard and are bringing the best of themselves into the ministry, into the church, and into the world.”
Please give a gift through Mission & Service. Through your gifts, you show you care about quality ministry leadership. Thanks to your generosity, love is there, training and supporting leaders every step of the way.